Inflammable
by D7Victor
Summary: Firefighter/Paramedic AU: New paramedic, Katniss, arrives at Ladder 7 to start her first job in the field. She immediately falls into a close group of firefighters and fellow paramedics but one person in particular catches her eye. Top-notch firefighter and the one person who can really get under her skin, Johanna Mason.
1. Exposure

The day had finally arrived. Just 48 hours ago Katniss had passed her final comprehension exam and now she was walking up to her assigned fire station: Ladder 7, Panem Fire Department. Her mother had been a nurse, her sister was determined to do the same, and she was now a paramedic. Everyone around the family always said that caring for others must run in the blood.

She gripped the handle of her bag tightly, took a deep breath and opened the side door to the common area only to be greeted by yelling.

"There's no fucking way he was out! His foot was in the green the whole time!" A female voice.

"Are you blind? Half of his foot was out!" A male voice.

"Let's just wait for the review." A different and calmer male voice.

Katniss walked down the hall towards the noise. On the wall were several pictures of the engines at the station, of firefighters attending parades and putting out fires, and one of the "Firefighter of the Month": Johanna Mason. The picture showed her to be a very proud and confident woman, her dark hair tied in a ponytail and with random red streaks. Her deep brown eyes were intense, her grin attractive and together they dared anyone to mess with her. Katniss stared another minute before she snapped herself out of the entrancement and continued down the hall, entering what seemed to be a living room.

"Are you kidding me? Bullshit." The source of the female voice threw her hands in the air, obviously yelling at the television again. She stood from the couch and was immediately identifiable. They locked eyes as the woman started walking towards the kitchen. The same smirk from the picture in the hallway appeared on her face. "Fresh meat is here, about damn time."

Everyone in the room turned their heads to look at Katniss. A tall and tan man stood from the same couch, giving her a large smile as he walked over to her. His bronze hair was flattened, probably from wearing his helmet at a call. "You must be Katniss Everdeen. Paramedic, yes?"

She simply nodded. "Pleasure to meet you. I'm Finnick Odair, firefighter. Over at the table is Gale Hawthorne." A gruff looking but handsome man with dark tousled hair gave a small smile and raised his hand in a silent hello. "He is one of your fellow paramedics on this shift. Across from him is Cressida, just Cressida. She is a firefighter but mostly works as Incident Commander and with public relations." Half her head was shaved and green vines were tattooed in the shaved area, behind her ear, and down her neck, disappearing under the collar of her shirt. Cressida didn't acknowledge her, seemingly too entrapped by the noise of her headphones and the laptop in front of her. "And in the kitchen, most likely scavenging for something to eat her anger away with, is Johanna Mason."

As if on cue, she walked out with a high-stacked sandwich on a plate. "Call me Jo or Mason, no need for the Johanna bullshit. Who are you?"

Katniss felt a flutter in her stomach when Johanna acknowledged her. "Um, Katniss Everdeen. Paramedic."

"A paramedic. You ever worked in a firehouse?" The woman took a full bite from the sandwich, leaning her weight on one leg as she stared intensely at Katniss the entire time she chewed.  
>"No. I did all my training rotations at hospitals."<p>

"Well, let me tell you this, Everdeen: it is a different beast here. There are no comforts of a hospital. You work in the field here. And if you make a single mistake, I will personally take pleasure in ripping your throat out." She took another bite of her sandwich, not once breaking the eye contact.

"I see everyone is getting along already." A voice sounded from a doorway to Katniss' right. A man with shaggy dirty blond hair and patchy facial hair appeared. "Chief Haymitch Abernathy. Welcome to Ladder 7." He greeted Katniss with a firm handshake. "You will come to find that we have a very…. diverse group of personalities here, the most vibrant one coming from the always joyous Johanna Mason." Finnick chuckled as Katniss and Haymitch shared an amused look. "Now, I have some paperwork for you so let's get that done and I can go back to sleeping."

* * *

><p>After signing off on paperwork and receiving official orders, Katniss made her way down to the garage to check out the ambulance. She pulled herself up into the back compartment and started looking through the drawers, familiarizing herself with item locations.<p>

"Need any help?"

The voice made her jump. It was the guy that was sitting at the table inside.  
>"Hawthorne, right?"<p>

"Just call me Gale." He stepped up into the back of the bus and sat on the bench next to Katniss. "So, where are you from?"

"District 12."

"Same. I thought I recognized your name from somewhere. Your father worked with mine. They were-" He seemed to realize what he was saying, as if remembering that this was the girl whose father died in a work accident. Katniss sighed at his hesitation. She hated when people pitied her. "I'm sorry, I didn't-"

"No, no. It's fine, it's cool. Where is everyone else from?" She poked around through a drawer before closing it and opening another one.

"Cressida is kind of unknown, we have theories but nothing exact. Jo is from 7, Finnick from 4, Haymitch is also from 12. The other guys are from all around, I can't remember all of them. Most of them will gladly chat with you." His smile was sweet and sincere. Katniss smiled back, glad her partner seemed like a good person to work with. And not the gruff he originally seemed to be.

A sharp ringing filled the station and immediately everyone sprung to life. Gale assisted her down from the bus and they ran to the cubbies where the uniforms lay ready, all except for hers. It was back near the truck. "Crap." She ran to her bag and began yanking the heavy pants over her navy blue station pants. The legs twisted up as she struggled to get them on. Gale was luckily there to help her.

"Can't get your gear on by yourself, Everdeen? I didn't know you needed the royal treatment." Johanna's voice called out from over the alarm, a teeth-showing grin across her face. Katniss' eyes were glued on the woman as she took in Johanna with her full turnout suit on. The woman walked away towards her assigned engine and Katniss watch her climb effortlessly into the passenger seat of the truck.

She finally got the pants on and pulled the suspenders over her shoulders. Grabbing the jacket, she hurried to the other side of the ambulance, jumping in the passenger seat.

* * *

><p>"What do we have?" Johanna leaped out of the engine, following Cressida to the storage areas on the engine with the breathing apparatus sets. She pulled one out and slung it over her shoulders, Finnick right next to her doing the same thing. Cressida made several calls over the radio before turning to them.<p>

"Looks like a potential compartment fire, class is unknown. Five floor residential apartment. Neighbors are saying the fire was coming from the fourth floor and that the three residents from the apartment are not present. One older male, two children. The other trucks will survey the bottom floors, you two are heading up for rescue."

"Got it." Finnick looked down at Johanna before they walked towards the door of the apartment complex. "Two in."

"Two out. Let's do this." Johanna looked up at him as they put their oxygen masks and helmets on. The duo clanked the heads of their axes together and stepped into the complex, walking step by step with each other. As they ascended the stairs it became hotter and louder, an obvious sign that the fire was close.

"Approaching fourth floor." Johanna spoke into her radio as they turned the corner of the stairs. They were met by a fire at the end of the hall, it slowly making its way through the wall and doorway to the apartment. "Let's go through the apartment next door and see if we can break the wall to the apartment with the fire."

Finnick nodded as they both checked their oxygen masks, taking careful steps towards the first door on the right. It was already open and they now rushed to get to the farthest wall, knowing their time frame was closing. Once found, they began hacking at the wall with their axes, alternating swings. As soon as the wall was compromised, they switched to the pick sides and started ripping it away.

Fire greeted them on the other side, where an oven was glowing from the heat of the flames pouring from it.

"PAR on Engine 7. Over." Cressida's voice broke from the radio.

Johanna answered. "Engine 7 has PAR, A-OK. Over."

"Received. Over."

"We have a Class C fire, electric stove. Turn off building power. Over." Johanna waited a moment before receiving a confirmation.

Finnick stepped through the hole first and made his way from the kitchen, closely followed by Johanna. The biggest rule was to always keep your partner in verbal and visual sight. That person was your buddy and your lifeline when things got bad. Both Finnick and Johanna took the buddy system seriously, following it from the first day of training when they met each other. They were inseparable ever since, being partners for six years.

They searched the apartment thoroughly, stepping into the final room that was still untouched by the fire. As soon as Johanna stepped closer to the attached bathroom, she yelled the screaming of a scared child. "Here!" Finnick rushed to the attached bathroom, where a man and two kids sat in the corner huddled together.

Johanna pointed two fingers at Finnick, him immediately understanding to grab the children. He agreed and picked up the young boy. He could not be any older than five. His sister reached up towards Finnick and he picked her up with his other arm. Johanna had taken his axe and was now helping the father up but realized he was not stable. A deep burn was on his face and chest, the fire having incinerated part of his shirt. She bent the barely conscious man over and kneeled down, positioning her shoulder underneath his hip so he would fall over her shoulder. While straightening up slowly, she grabbed onto his pants, pulling his legs into her chest. Finnick waited for the all clear before they moved towards the building exit.

"Engine 7, exiting now. Three recovered. One man. Two children. Having medics ready and waiting. Over."

"Wilco."

Within minutes they were outside and greeted by the station paramedics. Gale and another medic assisted Finnick with the kids. Katniss jogged over to Johanna, immediately starting to assess the man on her shoulders. Johanna did not stop walking until she made it to a stretcher, resting the man on it with Katniss' help.

Johanna pulled the mask down and pushed it to the side of her neck. "Unidentified male. Has third degree burns on the right side of his face and across the chest. Not in stable condition."

"He is likely to go into shock." Katniss ordered another paramedic to prepare fluids and oxygen in the truck. Her and Johanna pushed the carrier over and collapsed it before lifting it into the bus. She quickly worked to get gauze on the area to help keep it from infection. Katniss mumbled to herself. "What am I missing…"

Johanna watched from outside the truck. "It's a third degree burn on his face and upper body. What would you do if it were on his leg?"

Katniss looked at her with a blank face, showing obvious signs of beginner's anxiety.

"Elevate his upper body, brainless." She rolled her eyes and walked away, but not quick enough to see Katniss glare deeply at her.

* * *

><p>Katniss sat at the dining room table in silence as everyone else congregated in the kitchen, chatting. After a few minutes of watching her ice melt, everyone began to take a seat at the table with food. She continued to stare at her water until a full plate was placed in front of her. "Get over it, Everdeen. We all stumbled on our first day but now it is time to eat."<p>

She looked up to see Johanna looking down at her. Her fitted navy blue station shirt showed off her muscular shoulders and arms. Katniss started to wonder how the rest of her muscles looked under that shirt and those pants.

Johanna sat down next to her. "Quit staring at me, brainless. I know I'm hot but damn, control your eyes." She simply grinned even more and winked, causing Katniss to blush and finally look away. Right about now, she wanted to curl up in a fettle position, embarrassed with how attracted she already was to this girl.

But, she was distracted now. The group shared stories about their first days. Some of them terrifying and some of them hilariously unfortunate.


	2. Backfiring

Her first 24 hour shift was over and Katniss crashed down on the couch in the common area. Just as she opened a book to read, Cressida, Johanna, and Finnick all walked through with duffle bags in hand.

"Everdeen, what're you doing? Why are you still sitting around?" Finnick sat on the back of the couch, looking at her.

She shrugged. "I don't have a place around here yet. I figured I would stay in the barracks until I found one."

"No, no. We all live half of our lives here, no reason to stay the entire time. Come on, get your bag. You're coming home with us. I can't let you stay here listening to alarms all the time." He gestured her to get up and she did, rushing to gather her things. They were soon walking out the door, with Cressida and Johanna walking ahead, snickering and laughing with each other.

"Does she hate me?" Katniss glanced at the man. He seriously was an Adonis, someone that you would see in one of those firefighting calendars that people swoon over.

"I don't know, why don't you ask her?"

"Why would I ask anyone that? You don't just ask people if they hate you."

"Fine. Hey, Jo, do you hate Katniss?"

They all stopped walking and Johanna turned around, looking Katniss up and down. Katniss did the same, taking in the girl outside of her uniform. Converse shoes, skinny jeans, forest green v-neck shirt, hair down and layered, reaching her shoulders. She stood with a hand on her hip. "You're a little hard to swallow. And I don't take to those whimpering for pity because she forgot how to do something. It's not all about you, Everdeen. But if you don't buck up next shift, consider yourself done." She turned around and continued walking with Cressida.

Katniss stared straight ahead. "So….. she hates me." Finnick simply shrugged and started walking away. She jogged to catch up. "Wait, what do you know that you are not telling me?"

He stopped and turned to her. "Nothing at all. Why does it matter? Why do you care if she likes you? Just, come to work, do your job, and…. Whoa. Hold on."

Katniss had no answer to the questions other than that she was already smitten with Johanna after only 24 hours. And Finnick figured it out.

"You have a thing." He raised his eyebrows and smiled. She nodded slightly, not really knowing why she trusted him with this information. Though, Finnick was obviously the calm and collected soul of the group so why not trust him? "After a day and you already have a thing for Jo? Welcome to the lives of every other female in the city." He now wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they started walking again. "I wish you luck with that endeavor. She is a very difficult person to pinpoint. Six years of being partners and I still don't understand her most of the time."

"So, how are you so close?"

"Well, she is very simple but so simple that she is complex. Get what I mean?" He frowned as Katniss shook her head. The man sighed and thought about his next words for a minute. "She is simple. She dedicates her life to her job, she cooks and eats, she watches sports. But, she is so simple that it all goes full circle and turns into a puzzle. Jo puts so much into the two or three things that she loves that she leaves little to no room for anything else, whereas majority of us have all of these little things going on. And to be frank with you, all of her relationships have ended because she is her job and she cannot turn off. Jo is a simple, yet complex creature but she is the greatest friend I have ever had."

They walked in silence, Katniss processing all the words in her head. After walking a few more blocks they finally made it to the apartment. Cressida and Johanna had already gone inside but Finnick stopped Katniss before they went in. "Look, we have a thing in firefighting called back burning or backfiring. It is where you intentionally fight fire with fire. For a moment, it causes things to burst into chaos but when the two fires meet, they extinguish each other. It goes from this loud roar to a peaceful silence."

"So, kind of like the whole two negatives make a positive?" Katniss looked at him skeptically.

He grinned back at her. "Pretty much." He opened the door and they walked up the stairs to the apartment. It was large, with an open foyer that led straight into the living room where Cressida and Johanna had already crashed on the couches. To the left was a hall to two bedrooms and to the right was an open concept kitchen and dining room with a door to another bedroom in the far left corner.

"Finnick, where is Annie?" Johanna asked as she closed her eyes.

"At a gallery, getting one of her shows set up and then staying with her grandmother for the night." He turned to Katniss. "Annie is my girlfriend, soon to be fiancée but don't tell her that. She just got her first art show at a gallery in downtown. It opens Friday night and we are all going, including you." His eyes lit up with joy just talking about her and it made Katniss both sick in disgust and overjoyed to see someone so in love.

Cressida stood up and walked to the kitchen, grabbing four beers from the refrigerator. She handed one off to each of them, intentionally giving Katniss one last. "So, tell us about yourself."

"Um, well, what do you want to know?" Katniss twisted the bottle cap off and took a sip, puckering her lips at the bitterness.

Cressida tapped the top of her bottle. "Family first, as always."

"Mother and younger sister, Prim."

"And where do they live?"

"Back in 12."

"Any fun facts or talents?"

"Um…. I am really good with a bow and arrow. And I can't whistle."

Johanna looked taken aback and interrupted Cressida's questions. "You can't whistle? Everyone can whistle."

"I can't whistle."

"So, if you were in some random freak situation where you had to whistle to save your life?"

"Nope. Can't whistle."

"Prove it."

"By what? Not whistling?"

"Yes. Please not whistle for us." Johanna sat with her legs crossed and at full attention on the couch, beer bottle in hand.

"Fine." Katniss tried to whistle a simple tune but only air came out, no sound. The two other girls held back their laughter.

Finnick patted Katniss on her shoulder. "Don't let them pick on you. It only encourages them." He threw a pillow at Johanna as she finally unable to hold her laughter in any longer.

Hours passed and several beers later they were all gathered around the coffee table, laughing at the card game they were playing. Katniss looked up at the clock. "Crap. I was going to call my sister."  
>"Crap? Did y'just say crap?" Johanna stared at her in what looked like confusion.<p>

"Yes?"

"Who the hell still says crap? It's shit. Say shit. Go on, say shit."

Katniss looked around but only found Cressida and Finnick staring back at her and Johanna with amused looks. "Shit?"

"No. No. Seriously, say shit."

"Shit."

"NO. With emphasis, ya have ta say it like y'mean it, Ev'deen." Johanna was very much drunk and it was made obvious not only by her slurring but by the way she was swaying as she talked.

"SHIT."

"There ya go! Look, I got miss perfect pure girl to cuss!" She stared at Katniss. "Say fuck."

"No, I'm not going to entertain your need for me to cuss. I need to call my sister." Katniss stood up from the couch but immediately found herself back on the couch and pinned down. Johanna was straddling her and pressing her wrists into the cushions.

"Say it. Say fuck. Quit being such a baby 'bout it."

This was something Katniss had not been expecting but what did she have to complain about? "Fuck."  
>"No, ya have ta say it with emphasis. Find tha spark inside of you and scream it." The girl stared down at Katniss with intense brown eyes, waiting for her to respond. "With emphasis. Find your spark and scream it."<p>

"Fuck." Katniss swallowed and tried again. "FUCK!"

"Perfect." Johanna smiled in contentment and got off of her to stumble away to the bathroom. "I'll be right back." They never saw her again until the remaining three of them decided to go to sleep. Katniss cautiously opened the door to the bathroom and saw Johanna leaning against the bathtub, asleep.

"Should we move her?"

Finnick shook his head. "You can try but you probably won't come out alive. If I were you, I would go steal her bed because she won't be up for a while. Good night, Katniss." He smiled and walked off towards the room connected to the kitchen.

She walked to the room in the hallway that Cressida did not go into. As soon as she opened the door the scent of pine and forest hit her nose. It was comforting and felt only natural that Johanna's room would smell like trees and forest. All around the room were training certificates and medals hanging on the wall. A desk with a closed laptop sitting on top. Three bookshelves filled and overflowing with books. Next to the bed was a lamp and Katniss turned it on before turning off the overhead light. On the stand with the lamp was a picture of a family she presumed was Johanna's by the fact that she stood in the middle, no older than eight or nine, with a hatchet in her tiny hands. Her dark brown hair fell over her shoulders, her brown eyes were brighter than ever, and her smile was huge.

Katniss looked up to find Johanna standing in the doorway. "Oh, I'm sorry. I'll go sleep on the couch."

"No, it's a big bed and two fit in it better than one." Johanna walked forward as if she was still half asleep and drunk, stumbling and falling onto the bed proceeded by crawling and digging at the covers until she was under them.

Katniss sat on the bed and pulled the covers over her. Reaching over to turn off the lamp, she wished Johanna a good night.

"G'night." The mumble was barely audible but it made Katniss smile in amusement.

* * *

><p>The day off went by quickly and when they returned for the next 24 hour shift, it was busy and relentless. They arrived at the third scene and Katniss stepped out of the bus, looking at the fire in awe. It spanned over several buildings, spreading fast. Quickly, she took to action and joined the other paramedics assisting those who had escaped from the building. A family stood near the front of one of the fire engines so she made her way to them with her medical kit.<p>

Her foot snagged on something and caused her to trip, falling forward. As she went to stand up, yelling immediately came from next to her. "Watch where you are going! Don't cross over the hose lays, only an idiot does that. And you just yanked the connection out of my hands!" Johanna was standing next to the engine, her face lit with anger. "Did they not teach you about situational awareness in your class, brainless?" Katniss lay there for a second, trying to keep her cool but this was the fourth time Johanna had yelled at her while working on a scene and she was getting tired of it. "Well, don't just lay there! Get out of the way!" She stood in frustration and grabbed the medical bag, storming off as fast as possible.

* * *

><p>One person died at the fire under Katniss' watch and she felt the weight of it. Her first death while on duty. As the trucks pulled into the station, Katniss jumped out of the passenger side before Gale could turn the engine off. She started walking towards the common area door when she heard Johanna start piping up.<p>

"Chief! Get Katniss and I off the same shifts. She keeps making stupid mistakes and you know how-"

Katniss did not know what happened but when she snapped to realization she had pinned Johanna against the wall with her forearm, gripping at the girl's shirt. "Can you stop? I can handle being yelled at every now and then but you seem to find stupid reasons every time we get a call. I don't need you to criticize what I know I did wrong. I'm not the idiot you think I am." Katniss' words were said through gritted teeth and her grey eyes stared daggers.

Johanna smirked and tilted her head, far from intimidated. "There's that spark of fire I have been waiting for."

"Just lay off me, okay?"

"And when was I ever on you? Surely I would have remembered that." He smirk grew wider as Katniss felt her body betray her by blushing.

"What is wrong with you?" She stared each other down until Johanna answered.

"You."

"That doesn't even make sense!" Katniss rolled her eyes before letting go and walking away, frustrated with today already. If she needed to fight fire with fire, she was willing to do just that.

* * *

><p>Johanna walked into the kitchen and started looking through the pantry for something to eat. Between working on the fires and working out, she was almost always hungry. Finally, she found a snack and took a packet of crackers from a box. Turning to leave, she found Finnick leaning against the counter near the doorway.<p>

"You could be a little nicer to her, you know that right?" He crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows.

"Yeah, I could but why should I?" Johanna shrugged and shoved an entire cracker in her mouth.

"Because she was top of her class, she is very intelligent, and a damn good paramedic. She is one bound to be the best one we have ever had here."

"So why doesn't she act like it?"

"Because you are always yelling at her and making her already stressful job a lot worse." He reached forward and grabbed a cracker form the packet in Johanna's hand. She glared at him before shoving another in her mouth. "Just, calm it down. We all know you are alpha of the firehouse."

"Fine. Okay." She shrugged and started walking out of the kitchen but Finnick stopped her.

"Oh, and also apologize to her. Okay?" He pushed passed Johanna and left before she could protest.

She yelled at him anyway. "Fine, but it's not going to be a very good apology!"

There was a distant chuckle and response. "Of course not."

Johanna stared at the hall that led to the different barracks rooms and rubbed her tired eyes. Katniss was an anomaly to her. She knew the girl was holding something back, there was no way someone was that pure and kind in this day and age. It bugged her.

Taking a step forward, she made her way to the room Katniss was in. Johanna opened the door quietly and looked at the girl in her bed facing the wall. She smiled slightly at how peaceful and cute she looked curled up under the covers. Despite thinking of that, she walked over and sat carelessly sat down at the end of the bed by the girl's feet. "Hey, you asleep?"

Katniss stirred but kept her eyes closed. "I was. Why? Come to yell at me about how I'm sleeping wrong?" She curled her legs up closer to her and Johanna chuckled.

"No. I came to apologize, brainless. But, if you're going to be a smart ass about it, I'll leave." She leaned forward and went to stand but Katniss reached her arm behind her and laid her hand on Johanna's arm.

"No, just tell me whatever you were going to say."

Johanna sighed deeply. "Look, I know I am a hard ass and I have no inhibitions on what comes from my mouth and that makes it hard for everyone to deal with me, especially if you are not used to it. And I understand why you are tired of me yelling at you but when I feel that my job is compromised, I want to remove the problem right away." They sat in silence for a minute before she continued. "That picture you were looking at the other night, that was my family. They died in a house fire right before I left for college. I never ended up going. I immediately dropped out and became a firefighter instead, thinking that if I couldn't save my family's life, well, I could at least save others."

Katniss turned around to lay on her other side facing Johanna, her hand never moving from the girl's arm. Johanna didn't complain, Katniss could touch her any day at any moment for however long she wanted. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, it's not your fault. It happened and there is nothing to do about it."

"It still has to hurt though."

"It does but pain passes. Just like what you feel right now about the man that died today." Johanna placed her free hand on Katniss' and absentmindedly started rubbing the top of it with her thumb.

"No, it was my fault. I should have known there was a potential for cardiac arrest. I was negligent."

"There is always a chance of cardiac arrest. It is an extremely stressful situation to be in. Look, if you think his death was your fault then you need to find a new career. It will happen, sometimes often and sometimes not. But, as a paramedic, it is your job to get the person to the hospital in a safe manner and some days you will not even make it from the scene before they die and you have to understand that." Johanna shook her head and looked at her feet."There are some days where Finnick and I get to that person inside and it is too late. We have to work in a very tight time frame and sometimes it is just not fast enough. You need to understand that it is not your fault." She glanced up at Katniss.

"Thanks. That means a lot."

"The first few shifts are rough but you will make it through. You're tough. Want a cracker?" Johanna offered the packet towards Katniss.

"Um, no, thank you though."

"Look, just take a cracker." She pushed the packet closer to Katniss' face and held it there until the girl finally took one. "You can hide it under your pillow or flush it down the toilet but never turn down food from me. I don't offer food to just anyone." She stood up while patting Katniss on her side. "Only special someone's." Johanna gave a smile and a wink before walking out of the room without another word, knowing that she left Katniss speechless given her dumbfounded expression.

* * *

><p>Katniss lay in her barracks bed and stared at the ceiling, wishing that she were in a private room where no one else would walk in.<p> 


	3. Combustion

Shortly after their interaction, that night was filled with one call after the other. Fires, car wrecks, minor and major emergencies. Johanna let her arm hang out of the open window as Finnick drove back to the station. Fall was approaching so the night air was beginning to cool off despite the warm days. Trees weren't changing yet but they would soon and Johanna couldn't wait. After the trees changed, they would be bare and snow would fall and that meant her favorite season of winter would arrive.

Her fingers wiggled and she enjoyed the air flowing through them; it felt freeing as her mind wondered. Mostly to thoughts about Katniss. She knew the girl liked her, or so she hoped. After using very questionable deductive reasoning, it had been narrowed down to Katniss having some form of something towards Johanna. But, her brain often deceived her when it came to more than just potential one night stands.

"What's running through your mind, Jo?" Finnick's voice filled the headset she had on, completely vanishing the picture of Katniss she was mentally drawing.

"Just work." She hoped the cover was good enough.  
>"You never look at work with bright, lustful eyes."<p>

Nope. Not good enough. "Just, it doesn't matter."

Cressida's chuckle was no audible over the headset. "Doesn't matter, as she waves her hand absent-mindedly through the wind."

"Seriously, it's nothing. Leave me alone."

"Oh, someone is sensitive. Are we poking a sore spot or a soft spot?" Finnick smiled devilishly.  
>"I'm going to go with soft. Very soft. So soft that she wants to touch it…" The other woman laughed at her own comment and Finnick joined in.<br>"Seriously. Shut the fuck up. I'm exhausted and I don't want to talk about it." Johanna brought her arm back inside and just stared through the windshield.

"Jo, just tell us. No one else is in the engine but us three, plus you know I'm going to bug you later when we get back to our room." Cressida had a point and Johanna knew it. If she didn't say anything now, it would eventually be said later.

"Fine. It can't leave the engine though." She waited for both of them to agree. "I am infatuated with Katniss, but more than just my usual I want you as a fuck buddy for a few nights kind of way. She is something more and I like the feeling but I have never actually felt like this before and it's new and intimidating."

"I knew it!" Both Finnick and Cressida stated loudly together.

"What? How? Do you think she can tell?" Johanna turned to Finnick in fear.

"Why don't you ask her? Better yet, why don't you just do your kingpin move and kiss her, see what happens. What's the worst scenario? You get new shifts?" Cressida once again had a point but she couldn't just do that.

"I could but I think I'm in far too deep to just kiss her and hope it works." Johanna stared out the side mirror and saw the ambulance coming up beside them, slowly passing by. She looked inside to see Katniss leaning across Gale, making a funny face and waving at them hysterically. A smile peeked across her face in amusement.

Finnick chuckled. "Well, she's definitely a dork, that's for sure."

* * *

><p>It was close to 0400 when they finally arrive back at the station. Everyone was silent while taking care of the vehicles and supplies, wanting to go to bed. But Johanna couldn't sleep. Her mind was rushing around, thoughts of Katniss keeping her awake.<p>

She thought about how soft her hand was when she touched it.

She thought about the sincerity that always filled the girl's face.

She thought about how intense the girl looked at the scenes. Katniss had finally taken control and proved herself tonight.

She thought about her in uniform. Johanna was so used to seeing everyone in uniform but seeing it on Katniss was a whole new view. The light blue button up shirt fit her shoulders snug and showed off her toned arms. It was nearly fitted to the rest of her as well. And the navy blue pants rested perfectly on her hips. It was a vision she never wanted to lose sight off.

As Johanna's eyes finally began to close, a faint screaming could be heard. She quickly jumped from the bed and left her room, padding down the hall to the source: Katniss' room.

The screaming happened again and Johanna opened the door to find the girl still asleep but twitching actively. She shut the door as she walked in, immediately heading towards the bed, touching Katniss on the shoulder. "Hey, wake up." Johanna shook the girl lightly a few times before she finally jolted awake.

"Johanna. What… what are you doing here?" Katniss' eyes were wide open and filled with panic.

"You were screaming so I came to make sure you were alright."

"Oh." Katniss looked to be in a half-asleep state of confusion as she looked around the room. There was an extended moment of silence between them.

"Well then, if you're good now, I'm going to go and finally sleep." Johanna went to walk away but Katniss grabbed her wrist tightly, keeping her from moving any farther.

"Don't go. I don't want to be alone right now." Only a bit of moonlight fell in through the window but the faint light showed Katniss' eyes to be glossed over. Her voice trembled, almost begging Johanna not to leave.

And so she didn't leave. She sat down on the side of the bed. "What has shaken you up, Everdeen?"

"That man from earlier. He was in my dream and it all happened again. It all happened again." Katniss moved her hand down from Johanna's wrist and entwined their fingers together, gripping tightly. They fit nicely together and Johanna liked the feel. The girl's palms and fingers were callused but the tops were smooth. Her breathing was still filled with panic. "Jo, can I ask you something?"

"If you want to ask something, just ask."

"Can you lay with me?" The tremble in her voice was doubled now.

She didn't know what to do. "Sure." Now she knew, after the words exploded from her mouth. She kicked herself mentally. Katniss moved over as Johanna lifted the covers and tucked herself into the bed. As she laid down, Katniss immediately clung to her, laying her head gently on Johanna's upper chest and shoulder while wrapping her arm around the girl's stomach. The warmth filled Johanna. This felt perfect. It took every ounce of self-control to hide her contentment as she wrapped her arm around Katniss, pulling her in closer. "It's going to be okay. The first one is the hardest to get past. You just have to remember that the amount you save outweighs the ones you can't. I know, I promise."

The girl slightly nodded and gripped at a handful of Johanna's t-shirt. It was obvious that she didn't want to talk about it but instead wanted silent comfort. Her forehead pushed into Johanna's neck and as she exhaled, the air moved across her neck, sending her to wishing they were doing more than just laying there. As sleep overcame her eyes, her cheek rested against Katniss' forehead.

* * *

><p>Katniss woke up to find only herself sprawled across the bed. Johanna was gone and she couldn't help but wonder how long the girl stayed. Did she leave right after Katniss fell asleep? Did she just wake up and recently leave?<p>

She sighed and dragged her feet out of bed but remained laying down with her face in one of the pillows. Then the station alarm went off. "Ughhh… stop! I'm so tired." The door open and Johanna stood in the doorway.  
>"I was coming to see if you were awake but it seems you can't decided. Off-job call." She left the door open and walked away, leaving Katniss to throw on her boots and a new work shirt. Katniss rushed down to the garage and as soon as she walked in, Gale jogged up to her.<br>"No need for turnout gear. This call is for a car accident."

"Good."

Gale stared at her in shock. "Good?"

She realized what she said and shook her head. "I did not mean it like that. It's just… I'm just… Come on. Get in the ambulance and drive." Johanna's engine was pulling out of the garage as they shut the doors to bus. Gale turned the engine on and flicked the sirens and lights on.  
>It was silent for a few minutes until Gale spoke up. "So, I heard you yelling last night. You alright?"<p>

Katniss looked out the windshield. "I'm good. Just had some rough sleep."

"If you ever need to talk, I am willing to listen. "

"Thanks. I'm good though." With that, she ended their conversation and leaned her head against the window, wishing she was leaning against Johanna instead

* * *

><p>The accident was a quick site to attend and they were all back at the station shortly after. Everyone had attended to their vehicles to make sure they were stocked and ready for the next crew shift. They made their way home and crashed. Cressida went straight to her room to sleep and Johanna immediately changed from her work clothes and into a pair of loose basketball shorts and some retro band t-shirt. She lay down on the shorter couch and turned the TV on, flipping through the channels. Finnick had changed clothes and left to meet Annie for lunch. Katniss decided to take a quick shower and change into comfier clothes, joining Johanna in the living room. She lay on the longer couch, facing the other girl but using all of her strength to watch the TV instead.<p>

A few minutes into the show, Johanna sat up and looked at Katniss. "Want to play a game?"

Katniss blushed, not knowing how to answer the question. "Uh…"

"Video game, you fucking pervert." The girl way amused by the redness spread across Katniss' face.

"Oh. Sure, yeah. What kind?" She felt like a complete idiot now and there was doubt Johanna thought the same thing of her.

"Some racing game I picked up at the shop." She turned the console on and threw a wireless controller at Katniss, who caught it clumsily while sitting up. "Press X to go, use the left analog stick to steer. Pretty simple." Johanna returned to the couches with another controller but was now sitting right next to Katniss. She pressed a few buttons and they were soon picking out what car the wanted, its color, and any add-ons. Katniss had never really played games growing up and was usually mediocre at them so she decided to add a rocket shooter even though she had no idea what button to use for it to work.

The race started and it was two of them plus several other computer players. Johanna was extremely concentrated on the game, her tongue sticking out of the side of her mouth as she moved with the controller. Katniss smirked and started pressing random buttons until she figured out how to use the rockets. Once she figured it out, she started destroying everyone and was catching up to Johanna.

It was the final lap and the girl next to her was cursing to herself, determined to win. As the finish line approached, Katniss pressed the rocket button and blew Johanna's car up right in front of the line, passing her to get first place. She smiled to herself and looked over to the girl.

Johanna looked at her with irritation. "What the fuck was that?"

"What was what?" Katniss was confused on why she was angry about losing.

"Seriously? You blew my car up right in front of the finish line. Who the fuck does that?"

"I don't know. I didn't know it was that important. It's just a game." Katniss immediately regretted her words as Johanna glared at her.

"Just a game. Just a game? It's not just a game. It is between winning or losing, and I do not lose. I do not ever fucking lose and you just shit tossed my car and you don't even care about winning. If you cared about winning, then this would be a whole different story but you don't even care about winning and you fucking blew up my car anyway. What kind of fucking shit is that? Are you serious?" Johanna rubbed her eyes in frustration.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know it was that big of a deal. I thought we were playing for fun. I will let you win for now on. I'm sorry." She tried to make amends but Johanna just grunted in even more frustration.  
>She just gave her a side-glance and rolled her eyes. "No. You can't just let me win because then it is just as good as losing. No one gets joy from a pity win."<p>

"So, what do you want me to do?"

"Just play the game!"

"I was playing the game!" Katniss was seriously confused. If she played the game and beat Johanna, she got angry, but she couldn't lose on purpose because she would also get angry. "You are confusing."

"Just play." Johanna glanced at her again and pressed start, creating a new race.

They raced for an hour, it eventually escalating into both of them standing and screaming at the screen for their cars to go faster. It was a championship race that would determine who was the ultimate winner of the day.

"Fucking go! You piece of shit car! DRIVE!" Johanna was nearly in the television as she screamed with adrenaline.

Katniss was turning her arms with the car steering, thinking it would help for some stupid reason. "GO GO GO! FASTER!"

"COME ON! COME ON! FUCKING GO!" Johanna and her were standing shoulder to shoulder, leaning forward with intensity. The girl hip bumped Katniss and caused her to drive into a building, slowing her down.  
>"Oh, you bitch. If you want to play like that…" Katniss righted her car and used a speed boost.<br>"Whoa. Watch out world, Katniss is out for blood and she's cussing while she does it." Johanna hip bumped her again but Katniss responded this time with a shoulder check, causing the other girl to stumble several steps sideways. Katniss passed her and started jumping up and down as the final lap signal appeared. Johanna went to push her but she quickly stepped out of the way and hurried to get on the other side of the coffee table away from the assaults. But she was followed and both of them started taking cautious steps around the living room to get away from each other while focusing intently on the game. They were neck and neck, their cars now bumping each other in hopes that one of them would lose control.

"Shit, shit, shit!" Johanna started shaking her controller as she yelled.

Katniss was tense, watching the race come down to the wire. As the cars passed the finish line, her car was ahead by a nose. She threw her arms in the air and jumped on the couch. "YES! YES! YES! IN YOUR FACE, MASON! I BEAT YOU, FAIR AND SQUARE!" She ran in place on the couch, doing a random celebratory dance.

Johanna shook her head and laughed at the sight. "Yeah, yeah. You won. I get it. No need to blow the roof off. Holy shit." Katniss continued to dance and Johanna watched in amusement. "You are a brat, you know that, right?" The girl walked towards Katniss but Katniss simply ran across the couch to jump to the other one. Except when she went to jump, the couch moved and caused her to miss her step, sending her belly flopping onto the floor. With that, Johanna doubled-over in laughter, tears running down her face.

Katniss closed her eyes in embarrassment but started laughing as well. A door opened and they both turned to see a half asleep Cressida walk out of her room. "What is going on?"

Both of the girls looked at each other and burst into laughter again. Johanna caught her breath. "Katniss went to jump from one couch to the other but the couch moved and she landed face first –SMACK! Right on the ground." She started laughing again.

"Really? What are you, two fourteen year olds? Quit jumping on the couches." The woman rubbed her eyes. "I'm trying to get some sleep before Annie's gallery opening tonight. Maybe you should do the same." She turned around and walked back to her room.

"No need to be a cranky bitch, Cress." Johanna yelled out, winking at Katniss.  
>A muffled yell came from the room. "Fuck you, Jo."<br>"Every party needs a pooper and that's why we invited you!" She yelled back again and was met with silence. Johanna looked at Katniss and smiled. "So, what are you wearing to the gallery tonight?"

* * *

><p>Johanna helped Finnick with his bowtie and dusted off his shoulders. "Very dapper, fine sir." They smiled at each other before Finnick looked up with a stunned face. She turned to see what he was staring at and understood immediately. Katniss was now standing in the living room, wearing a floor length red dress. A slit ran up to the middle of her thigh and it had two thin straps accenting her strong shoulders. It fit tightly to her, pushing her chest up and hugging her hips just right.<p>

Johanna tried to wipe her sweaty hands on her dress pants discreetly. Her heart raced and her stomach turned. She took in the loose brunette curls framing Katniss' face, the red lipstick that matched the dress, and the black eyeliner that made her grey eyes pop even more than usual.

"How do I look?" Katniss seemed a little uncertain of herself.

"Absolutely stunning. You've made Jo lose control of her jaw." Finnick complimented with a large smile, stepping around Johanna. He placed his hand on her shoulder. "You might want to pick it up off the floor."

Johanna snapped out of her hypnosis and blinked several times to try and erase the very sexual visions from her mind. "Good. I mean great. You look great. You look wonderful."

"Not only did she lose her jaw but she complimented you three times in a row." The man took Katniss' hand and kissed her knuckles lightly. "I have never seen that before."

Cressida walked out of her room ready to go and all four of them made their way to the gallery.

* * *

><p>"Katniss, this is Annie." Finnick stood proudly next to his girlfriend, her brown hair flowing around her shoulders and her sea-green eyes bright.<p>

"It's nice to finally meet you. Finnick has talked about you being a great medic at the station." Annie extended her hand for a shake. Katniss accepted.  
>"Thank you. It is nice to meet you as well. The gallery looks amazing, I can't wait to see more of it."<p>

"Feel free to eat the food and drink the champagne while gazing." She smiled but Katniss' noticed a quirkiness hidden behind it. Both Annie and Finnick excused themselves and left Katniss looking around. She saw Johanna looking at a painting, chugging a glass of champagne and immediately grabbing a new glass, chugging that one as well.

"You know you are supposed to sip the drinks while at these events, right?" Katniss seemed to surprise Johanna as the girl jumped and turned around.

"Oh, I know but I don't want just a sip." Johanna's response made Katniss' question what she really meant but she ignored it and looked at the painting on the wall instead.

"Annie has some beautiful work." It was a painting of the ocean with fishing boats in the distance. The brush marks were intricate and the colors vibrant. Out of her peripheral, Katniss witnessed Johanna down two more drinks. Then she felt a hand on her lower back.

Johanna leaned into her, lowering her voice. "I'm going to be honest with you on why I'm drinking so much. You look hot and at this exact moment, I want to find somewhere in this building where I can fuck you. But, I am drinking because I know it won't happen." She almost walked away but Katniss grabbed the girl's arm, dragging her through the gallery and to a nearby staircase. They climbed it and opened the first door to what seemed to be an art storage room. As soon as Katniss closed it, Johanna shoved her against the door and pushed herself against Katniss, their lips closing in together. Almost immediately, their tongues met in passion and Katniss grabbed the sides of Johanna's face, walking them backwards until Johanna's back slammed into a shelf.

Their tongues continued their fierce dance as Johanna grabbed Katniss' hips and pushed her against a nearby wall. One of Johanna's legs rested between Katniss' and her thigh grinded against her, making Katniss moan into the girl's mouth. Johanna grabbed Katniss' wrists and shoved them against the wall above her head. Her lips moved from Katniss' mouth and across her jaw line to the spot just below her ear. More groans came from her as Johanna now lightly pulled at her ear with her teeth. She felt the girl grin against the side of her face as she whispered. "How long have you been wanting this?"

Katniss shivered at the light air in her ear. "Since I first saw you."

"That's what I thought." Johanna's whisper and intense brown eyes were seductive. Her lips now moved to Katniss' neck, her teeth lightly biting until her collarbone, where she caressed her lips across it, the extremely light touch making Katniss tense.

"Jo. Do it, no more teasing." Her voice was already filled with desperation.

Johanna looked at her and grinned. "Do what?" Her lips immediately returned to her collarbone as she made her way up the undiscovered side of Katniss' neck. She rested her lips against Katniss' ear. "Do what?"

Katniss pushed her hips forward against Johanna's thigh as she shivered from how turned on she was. "Fuck me." Her eyes met with the girl pinning her to the wall. "Fuck me."

"You should know by now –" she kissed right behind Katniss' ear, finding a sweet spot that made her shiver "- I don't take orders." Their eyes met again and Katniss noticed a wicked grin on Johanna's face. "Do what?"

"Fuck me, please."  
>"You are a quick learner." Johanna's hands moved from Katniss' wrists and the left one moved immediately to her left thigh where the dress slit was. Her fingers barely touched Katniss' skin but the presence was enough to make the girl shiver again, her eyes closing tightly in want.<p>

"Jo, please. I need you now."  
>"You can wait." Johanna teased her and kissed her on the jaw line as her hand slowly snaked up and down her thigh, tracing small circles for a minute before moving her panties aside. Her fingers now traced the outside of her needs and Katniss pushed against Johanna, who moved her hand out of the way.<br>"Jo… please… I can't take any more. Please." With that, one of Johanna's fingers pushed against her sex, moving in circles around the nub. Katniss moaned and tensed with pleasure, wrapping her arms around the girl. Her finger now moved down and was joined by another before Johanna pushed them inside, moving in a perfect rhythm now with Katniss' hips. Her other hand reached down and moved the dress out of the way as a finger began rubbing Katniss' nub again.

She felt weak and her legs trembled with pleasure. Loud moans escaped from her as she moved against Johanna. "Jo… don't stop. Don't stop." Her arms gripped tightly around Johanna as her body finally gave in. Johanna's name was screamed from her mouth as she fell weakly against the girl after orgasm.

Johanna held her tightly and was sweating from the heat between them. They both looked at each other again and smiled, kissing each other lightly on the lips a few times. "We can continue this after the event?"

Katniss grinned and nodded. "Of course. I have to return the favor, after all." She grabbed Johanna behind the neck and pulled her in for a deep short kiss before walking out of the room, leaving the girl behind and wondering how she was going to keep her hands off of Johanna until the end of the night.

* * *

><p>Note: Thank you for the continued support and reviews. You guys are too amazing! :) It looks like the other Joniss au I have been working on will get posted soon. It is sort of reality based and is quite the adventure. As for this one, it still has a while to go so you have plenty of time to enjoy it. Please continue to post reviews and send me feedback, whether public or private. Cheers!<p> 


	4. Flash Point

Katniss gathered with the crowd as they all stood around a small stage. Finnick waited in front of the mic, playing with his bow tie, obviously nervous. As the last of the crowd trickled in, Johanna appeared at Katniss' side. She looked adorable in her black dress pants and green and white checkered button-up shirt. The sleeves were rolled up and pushed above her elbows. It was casual and looked good on her. Their gazes met and Johanna winked with a half grin causing Katniss to blush. The girl seemed like trouble in the end but if trouble felt as good as she felt earlier, it was welcomed.

Finnick cleared his throat in the mic. "Hello. Thank you all for joining us tonight. It is an absolute pleasure to see Annie getting this much support from friends, family, and even strangers we have yet to meet.  
>"As most of you know, this is her first installment of hopefully many to come. She has been working hard day in and day out on her pieces and on making sure she succeeds at what she loves to do, and I admire her deeply for that. It's one of the many reasons I love her so much." He gestured for her to join him on the stage and she did, taking her usual spot right next to him. "Annie is truly an inspiration. Despite hard times and moments when she thought everything was impossible, she has produced breath-taking art. Her strength amazes me and gives me hope for a brighter future. And so, on a night that means so much to her, I only hope to make it perfect."<br>Finnick dropped to one knee while pulling a small box out of his pocket. He opened it and smiled widely up the shocked girl. "Annie, I love beyond the seven seas. Will you marry me?"  
>She nodded and agreed without hesitation. They hugged tightly and Finnick pushed the ring onto her finger. Everyone clapped and cheered. Johanna put two fingers to her lips and whistled loudly. She then hurried her way to the stage and embraced the engaged couple.<br>Katniss watched them interact. It was adorable how much Finnick and Johanna acted like siblings. They had a give and take relationship, where each paid the other back eventually. It reminded Katniss slightly of how she and Prim interacted.

The rest of the night was spent looking at Annie's pieces and drinking too much champagne. It was fine though, Katniss thought, she would need to liquid courage later in order to pay Johanna back for earlier.

Finnick and Annie were staying at Annie's parent's beach house to celebrate their engagement and Cressida was out spending her night at a few bars with friends, leaving Katniss and Johanna to themselves. They both laughed at the convenience as they walked up the stairs to the apartment. Johanna pushed the key into the door and unlocked it, letting Katniss in while trying to pull the key back out. As she stepped through the doorway, Katniss shut the door and locked it before turning towards Johanna.  
>She grabbed the girl by the shoulders and pinned her against the wall, looking slightly down at the now wide open brown eyes. Katniss rested her lips against Johanna's ear and whispered to her. "I know you don't take orders but you will now. I want you to feel the struggle of not being in control. Understand?"<br>Johanna grinned, her body tensing under Katniss' grip. "I didn't know you could play this game. What happened to you being innocent?"  
>"There are sides of me that people don't know. Also, I have had… a lot to drink."<br>The girl chuckled in response. "So, what happens if I don't let you take control?" Johanna moved her face so that they were staring intensely at each other. Katniss could see the dare in her eyes.  
>"I will find a way, trust me." Katniss leaned down and bit lightly at Johanna's neck and smiled as she flinched in pleasure. "Now, go lay on the bed." She let go and watched the girl walk away to the bedroom. Her heart pounded with nervousness as she followed. This was a completely new experience and it was bound to be a disaster but she had to one-up Johanna and it seemed sex was the best way to get the upper hand with the firefighter.<br>Johanna lay on her side facing the door, a smile across her face. "Now what?"  
>She shut the bedroom door, locking it as well. "Watch." Katniss pulled her heels off and unzipped her dress, pushing one shoulder off at a time and letting it fall slowly around her feet. She revealed herself in matching black bra and underwear. As she stepped away from the dress on the floor, she walked over to the bed and pushed Johanna back against the mattress with one hand. Her thighs straddled over Johanna's waist and immediately the girl rested her hands on them, rubbing them lightly. Katniss grabbed her hands and pushed them away. "No. Part of this is that you don't get to touch me unless I give you permission. Understand?" She looked down at the Johanna who was already squirming from not being the one in control and from being turned on. The girl simply nodded. "What was that?"<br>"I understand." Johanna's voice was shaky but still dripping in an abundance of confidence.  
>"Good. You are a fast learner." She smirked as Johanna's eyes went wide from her own words being used against her. "Now, take off your shirt."<br>The girl abided and unbuttoned her shirt, pulled it off, and threw it on the floor. Katniss looked down at the moonlight covered skin. Over her heart was a tattoo of a Maltese cross and her last name in cursive under it. She took in the muscular chest and shoulders, wanting to kiss every inch of skin on the girl. Her hands moved to Johanna's pants and undid the belt, button, and zipper without ever breaking eye contact. She moved back and pulled the pants off then resumed her straddling.  
>Johanna's hands moved to Katniss' legs again and immediately they were pushed away. "You know better than that." Katniss' fingers slowed moved downward from the top of Johanna's collarbone to the points on her hip bones, stopping to caress small circles against the soft skin.<br>Johanna whimpered at the touch. "Fuck..."  
>Katniss removed Johanna's bra with one hand and used the other to start rubbing softly at the girl's already erect nipples. She leaned down and started kissing downward from her sternum. Her lips pushed and grazed along Johanna's toned stomach.<br>"Fuck... Kat." Her stomach tensed and released as she reached out next to her, gripping at the sheets on the bed. "Stop, please."  
>"Why?"<br>"It's too much."  
>Katniss leaned forward so her face was directly over Johanna's. "Can you not handle a little teasing? You can dish it out but you can't take it." Johanna's face cringed and her hips moved upwards in frustration.<br>Katniss went right back to teasing the girl below her. Nipping at her hip bones as her hands moved softly but strategically over the bare skin. Johanna continued to moan and whimper and grab at the sheets in frustration. "Kat, please..."  
>"Please what?"<br>"Please fuck me."  
>Katniss rested her chin on Johanna's stomach and looked at the need in the dark brown eyes staring down towards her. They were begging for release. "Not yet."<br>The girl sighed and shifted her hips around. Katniss moved her legs between Johanna's and continued dragging her lips, making the girl below twitch and tense. She ran her lips down her left thigh as a hand traced along her right.  
>"Please. Please, Katniss... fuuuck." Johanna's hands were now reaching behind her head, grabbing tightly at the sides of the pillow as she pushed her face into the fabric to muffle her frustrated moans.<br>Katniss stopped for a moment and enjoyed the view of Johanna struggling. But she continued on quickly, wrapping her arms under Johanna's thighs. She kissed along her hips as they rose to meet each touch.  
>Katniss moved down and moved her tongue into Johanna, tasting her. Her tongue moved in circles around the other girl's clit. Johanna reached down and ran her fingers through Katniss' hair but Katniss reached up and grabbed her wrists, pinning her arms to the bed. This made Johanna groan again in frustration, a sound that turned Katniss on.<br>Katniss took her time, moving slowly and enjoying the moans coming from Johanna's throat. She let go of one of the girl's wrists and moved her left hand to Johanna's sex, lubricating two fingers on Johanna's wetness before inserting them without warning. Johanna gasped and her back arched. Katniss looked up. "What are you not going to do?"  
>Johanna's eyes were tightly closed and her mouth open has she breathed heavily. "Touch you. I'm not going to touch you."<br>"Good. One more time and I will stop and you will deal with it." Katniss began to push and pull at Johanna as her hips moved with the rhythm. Gradually, she got faster and faster and Johanna's moans got deeper and deeper. She grinned as she watched Johanna's hands grip the sheets with white knuckles, trying her best to not touch Katniss.  
>As Johanna started to reach her orgasm, Katniss started to move her thumb over the nub. This sent Johanna over the edge and into screaming profanities with Katniss' name in between. Her body arched and twisted.<br>After the strong reaction, Johanna's grip loosened on the sheets and she opened her eyes, staring at Katniss. "Holy shit, Everdeen."  
>Katniss smiled and crawled on top of Johanna, leaning down to kiss her. After the exchange she lay down and rested her head on Johanna's chest, listening to her still rapid heart. "Three days and this is where we are at already?"<br>Johanna cautiously wrapped her muscular arms around Katniss, as if waiting for them to get pushed away but when they didn't, she let one of her hands move around her back aimlessly. "Don't get too much hope from it. I don't really do relationships."  
>"Why?" Katniss moved her hand to the back of Johanna's neck and started playing with the loose hairs.<br>"Being a firefighter and all. It's too hard to think about what would happen if I died and left someone behind. Also, I have a handful of exes that would tell you I am a bitch with nothing but bad intentions."  
>"You know you don't have to be in a relationship to leave someone behind, right?" Katniss started to really wonder about Johanna's past. There was now obviously more than what met the eye and the girl was good at keeping it locked away though. To anyone outside of her bubble, she seemed collected and serious. To Katniss, she really was complex, as Finnick mentioned. And what were these potential bad intentions?<br>"It's not the same." Johanna looked at her with deep brown eyes filled with a past. She pushed loose strands of hair behind Katniss' ears and a small smile appeared. "Now, how did someone as innocent as you learn to be so good at this?"  
>Heat flashed across Katniss' face in embarrassment. "Um, movies, books. I don't know."<br>"Not experience?"  
>Katniss started to sink away but Johanna pulled her back.<br>"It doesn't matter brainless. But I'm pretty sure you deserve better treatment than earlier." Johanna rolled them over and pushed Katniss on her back, beginning their long night of wearing each other out.

Katniss once again woke to an empty bed but this time, there was the smell of breakfast floating in the air. She was hungry and thirsty and a little sore from the night's activities. As she stretched in bed, she looked down to see giant hickeys on her hips and thighs. The door to the bedroom began to open and she quickly covered herself with the sheets.  
>"Calm down, brainless. Just me." Johanna walked in. She was wearing a pair of her knee length workout shorts from the station and a black v-neck shirt. Katniss did not understand how someone could look so good wearing any outfit. "Do you like waffles?"<p>

"Yes."

"Good! How many do you want?"

"Uhhh… how big are they?" Katniss was hungry so she didn't want to not ask for enough.

"About the size of your face." Johanna smiled playfully. "Seriously, they are big."

"Are you calling my face big?"

"Maybe… maybe not. Look, I will make a bunch of them and you can eat as many as your want. You should go take a shower. I'm thinking we go into the city today since you haven't been there yet."  
>"Okay! Sounds great." Katniss had been waiting for when she would have the opportunity to adventure into the city and see what everyone talked about. As Johanna left the room, she gathered fresh clothes.<br>The door opened again and Katniss did her best to cover herself with a nearby blanket. "By the way, Finnick is moving out tomorrow because he and Annie got the lease for the apartment across the hall. Cressida is moving to his old room. If you want, we can add you to the lease and you can move into Cressida's current room and we can get all of your things out of storage. Sound good?"  
>"Sounds great." Finding a place to live took a lot less time than Katniss thought it would.<p>

Katniss took a bite of the giant waffle, amazed at how fluffy and tasteful it was. It was the best breakfast food she had ever tasted.  
>"Family recipe. I make the greatest waffles." She must have made a face given Johanna's reply. "I am going to take a quick shower while you eat."<br>Katniss nodded as she swallowed a large forkful of food. "Okay."  
>"Good. We will leave in about an hour then take the train in to the central station, walk around from there." Johanna walked by and grazed her hand along Katniss' thigh.<br>Katniss tensed and relaxed at the touch but shortly tensed again when the main door opened and Finnick walked in. "Good morning, beautiful Katniss Everdeen." He smiled at her as he walked into the kitchen only to lean against the counter in front of the bar too. "How are you this morning? Did you have a friend over last night?"  
>Katniss continued eating, hoping the mouthfuls of food would cover her blushing. "I'm good, and no."<br>"Last night would have been the perfect night for it. Everyone bubbly from the champagne, art everywhere, there were a bunch of attractive people at the gallery." He kept prying for some reason while staring at her. They just stared at each other before Finnick picked up a waffle and started eating it. "Right. Jo in the shower?"  
>"Yep."<br>He walked off to the bathroom and opened the door, stepping in and closing it. She heard Johanna yell at him to get out but he didn't step out until several minutes later, covered in water. He simply smiled at her and continued to his bedroom to change.

Finnick opened the door to the bathroom "Jo?"  
>Johanna pulled the curtain back enough for half of her to be visible. "Finnick, get out! How many times do I have to tell you to stop cornering me while I'm in the shower?"<br>"You can never tell me too many times." He gave an arrogant smile and she rolled her eyes.  
>"So what do you want now?"<br>Finnick stepped closer to the tub. "I see you made your mark on Katniss already?"  
>"And how do you know?"<br>"Well, she is wearing a tank top and is very oblivious to the giant hickey just below the back of her neck. And I only saw her interacting with one person last night: you." Finnick sat down on the closed toilet seat and looked up at the naked girl. "And not that I was looking but you have some nice marks on you as well."  
>"It's nothing." Johanna put some conditioner in her hand and started lathering it through her layered hair.<br>"Is it nothing for both of you?"  
>"Yes. Now quit being a nuisance."<br>"I'm pretty sure it's more than nothing. She very obviously has more than just sexual need unlike a lot of the other girls you have slept with." Finnick was met with a large splash of water to the face. He stood up and moved to a safer corner of the bathroom.  
>Johanna opened the shower curtain completely. "It's nothing. There is nothing else."<br>"Jo, think about it: you two work together, you will be living in the same apartment together. Can you seriously tell me there will be nothing else involved? I'm going to call bullshit on you if you think that."  
>"Two people can fuck and not have feelings!"<br>"They can but Katniss isn't like you, Jo. She has emotions. She doesn't just detach them from everything. Can you not read people at all?" They stared at each other, waiting for the other to talk.  
>"We talked about it last night. She knows and nothing else is happening."<br>"Okay. If you say so, but when you start developing feelings, don't come moping to me about them."  
>"I won't because nothing else is going on. Now, get out so I can finish my once peaceful shower." Johanna yanked the curtain closed.<br>"Got it." Finnick walked towards the toilet again and flushed it, causing the pressure and temperature of the shower to change.  
>"Finnick! You're a jerk!" He laughed as he left Johanna scrambling to move out of the way of the scalding shower stream.<p>

* * *

><p>I am back! I apologize for the neglect I have put upon this story and you guys. A lot has been going on and I am finally getting everything sorted. Despite my hiatus from updating this, I have been writing down ideas and clips so it is basically fill in the blanks at this point. That means I will be getting back to regular updates!<p>

So, I listened to three songs over and over and over again in order to set the tone for this: Down Boy by Yeah Yeah Yeahs; Come On Closer by Jem; Bad Intentions by Niykee Heaton. Just thought they deserved the credit.

Please continue to give feedback via comment or PM. :)


End file.
